ups and downs

When Maximus wakes up, we never know what we are going to get.  Sometimes he is jumping up and down in his crib and so so happy.  And sometimes he is mad/sad.  Writhing mad/sad.  Maybe it's his hands, maybe he didn't get enough sleep, maybe it was a nightmare, maybe it's genetics.  Hehe.  

Here we are after a angry/sad waking up.  And a little photo booth action cheered him up.  We did this about two dozen times.  And I had to pull out my best distraction techniques to end it.  He has mastered the mad/sad to happy face.  It's a great party trick.  

And the mad/sad to happy face seems to be a theme around here.  

Hooray!  We made it to Utah safe and sound... family, friends, holidays, food.

Boooo!  Maximus was too sick for surgery.

Hooray!  We rescheduled and surgery went well.

Boooo!  His left hand was worse than we realized.

Hooray!  We are having a baby!

Boooo!  I hate being pregnant and all the worries that come with it. 

Hooray!  We have had a great trip and the kids are having a blast.

Boooo!  Everyone has had their share of sicknesses and Maximus is basically in quarantine because his body doesn't need anything else to deal with.  

Hooray!  We are steadily working our way through the Utah food bucket list. Pizzeria Limone, smothered burrito from La Puente, gyro from Crown Burger, pizza bender from Italian Village, chocolate cashew shake from Iceberg, the ichi roll from Red Ginger, steak salad from Cafe Rio, In-n-Out, Dunford Donuts, and, of course, my mom's food.  

The final Boooo!  They want to keep the pin in Maximus' finger longer and follow it up with some pretty intensive therapy to fight the scars, skin, bone, and tendons from curling up again.  

And that means another change of plans.  And I use the word plans loosely because it seems like plans are quite the unfamiliar species these days.  

So, it took a ton of brain power to decide that I will be the one to stay here with Maximus and Karl with take the big kids back for school, baseball, dance, and let's be honest, he wants to get back to his plants in Kauai.  I will hang around here until the end of the month to make sure Maximus gets the treatment that he needs.  

Let's end on a Hooray!  I took all the kids in for their yearly check-ups and everyone is super healthy.  Eva and Samuel are bitty people.  Which is interesting because you should see them eat.  They are mini foodies and while other kids are sticking to their nuggets and crackers, my kids are eating what we are eating.  Plus the nuggets and crackers.  Oh, and  Maximus is huge.  And though those percentile charts don't determine much, I thought it was pretty funny that my kids can all be so so different.  

I kind of feel like a bird that is on an infinite adventure.  But I sort of really want to just land and rest.  And I get jealous of those birds all comfy and warm in their cages.  Silly and dramatic, probably.  Some reasons we choose, and some reasons just happen, and some are because my other half loves being a free bird.  I love being creative but these days most of my creative energy is going towards figuring out how to take the next rocky step.  

Don't worry.  I am not claiming hardship.  It's more like wimpyship.  

And I promise, I will do my very very best to make the most of my extended trip here.